Immediately after the golf ball is hit by the putter, the ball has 12 joules of mechanical energy. Seconds later, after the ball has rolled several meters through the grass, its mechanical energy has dropped to 4 joules due to friction with the grass and air.

The amount of mechanical energy lost by the golf ball is the amount of heat energy gained by the ball, grass, and air molecules due to friction.
A.
equal to
B.
less than
C.
greater than
D.
unrelated to